


Haze (another god-complex, cock it and pull it)

by InfinityIllusion



Category: Bleach
Genre: Aizen's god complex, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Author is tired, Blanket Permission, Disassociation, Forced, Illusions, M/M, Solitary Confinement, Temporary Amnesia, Tsukiyomi AU, Winter War AU, and fun with formating, but it might be annoying, but other than that, do not copy to another site, for storytelling purposes, like from Naruto, lots of repetition, no beta we die, sap at the end, what is essentially, when that was a Threat
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-05-28
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:36:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24422143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InfinityIllusion/pseuds/InfinityIllusion
Summary: Aizen decides ripping all the worlds from the Soul King’s grasp would be an even better use of his powers (and the Hyōgoku).UraIchi Week 2020: Day 4  Canon-Divergence AU
Relationships: Kurosaki Ichigo/Urahara Kisuke
Comments: 4
Kudos: 83
Collections: UraIchi Week 2020





	Haze (another god-complex, cock it and pull it)

**Author's Note:**

> Welp. This was supposed to be longer.
> 
> Uh, yeah that's about all I've got.
> 
> Oh, uh, longer Winter War was a Thing, bc Aizen needed to further build up power, probably by sacrificing and eventually eating, souls. So instead of trying to create the ouken he actually pulled an Obito (but went even farther than what Obito planned) and put all the worlds under a genjutsu/warped reality. Which one he picked I don't really know.
> 
> (...Is this technically an Apocalypse AU? IDK)
> 
> ...also yeah I did just change the title like an hour after posting sorry.

* * *

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“Kurosaki-kun, please read page 79.”

Ichigo isn’t quite sure what he’s reading, but the words come out smooth and the teacher accepts it with a nod and a quick, “good.” She moves on to call on another classmate, who’s face escapes Ichigo as soon as he hears their name.

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“Partner up with your seat-mates. Please discuss the impact of the geography of Kyoto on its place as the center of culture – if there is a connection.”

He turns, shifts his desk slightly, as does the person behind him and the person to his left and the person in front of them. “We have the map, but didn’t Sensei mention how ….”

There’s water rushing through Ichigo’s ears, nothing his partners are saying make sense, there’s no information passing their lips.

There’s no information passing his lips, when he argues his point – what is his point? – and he thinks the person next to him might disagree.

It doesn’t matter, though. He’s never seen any of them before in his life.

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“Hand your math homework in – today’s the last day before your test! Also, keep in mind finals are coming up for the semester!”

Everyone nods their heads, except Ichigo. He’s not sure which semester it is, and for some reason his uniform isn’t helping him narrow down the options. The clouds are grey and it’s raining heavily, but Ichigo doesn’t get any impressions of high humidity, so it’s probably not summer, properly at least.

What is the math test even on?

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

Did Ichigo even have an art class? He hadn’t thought he had an art class, but his class is in art, and they’re painting…something.

Ichigo’s painting something…green? He’d thought he’d been paying more attention, but he’s literally just making green stripes on the paper.

What’s the assignment again?

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

What part of the textbook are they on in English?

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.” “ _Kaimoku.”_ “Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ” _Onegaishimasu. Onegaishimasu. Onegaishimasu. Onegaishimasu.Onegaishimasu.Onegaishimasu._

_Onegai._

~IiI~

Kisuke is sitting at the bench in his shop. He’s been sitting at this part of his shop for days, he’s pretty sure, not moving for food or water or anything that might indicate that he’s anything mortal, spirit or no.

Tessai-san is somewhere in the back, although sometimes he joins Kisuke in the shop, manning the cash register for the intermittent customers buying normal candy – Choco baby, Mitsuya Cider hard candy, Apollo, Hi-Chew, Pocky, Kit Kats, Meiji Chocolate bars, any of a wide variety of lozenges.

Kisuke made a lot of those recipes, some from things he’d discovered by accident in Soul Society, some from suggestions and ideas he’s had here, in Karakura.

He thinks he did, at least. They’re not wrapped in the same flashy kind of packaging – there’s not enough reflective enough, not covered in colorful plastic, or something old-fashioned. They’re sold in rolls, wrapped in paper with the name and purpose written in neat black ink. The display is covered in designs from Ururu, and the occasional contribution from Jinta.

(Where are they?)

Kisuke keeps staring at the display, unblinking.

There’s no reason for him to be here. There’s nothing keeping him here, mind blank, body frozen.

There’s nothing keeping him here.

He could get up, go to his laboratory, invent any number of – of – of.

There’s nothing keeping him here.

Right?

~IiI~

Ichigo was meant to be doing something after school, but doesn’t remember what. He’s halfway across town, but he’s not in the down town area.

The library isn’t anywhere near here, it’s by the train station, but he’s here for something. The grocery store Yuzu uses and sometimes asks him to swing by is much closer to their house. Even the bigger ones, or the import stores, that she’ll occasionally stop in for greater variety or something specific that the store near their house doesn’t have (like cheddar cheese in blocks) aren’t all that close to him.

His mom’ll sometimes --.

( ~~that’s not right, why is his mom – ?)~~

There’s a bunch of old fashioned houses and shops, which tells him he’s closer to the outskirts than down town, and Ichigo has never been here before in his life, at least, as far as he remembers. Maybe his issue with faces is now spreading to places he’s been?

Maybe he shouldn’t have gotten so many head injuries in his fights. Yuzu always looks a little sad and ~~his mom~~

(But he usually doesn’t _get_ head injuries in fights – most of the time he’s handing other people their asses, not the other way around. And yeah, people have taken swings at his head, but nothing he’s even been hit with or been hit by should’ve caused something like that.)

He stares at one of the shops, something tickling his memory.

He shrugs and turns around.

Maybe he’d been here when he’d been wandering around or something.

~IiI~

There’s still nothing keeping Kisuke behind the counter of the Shouten, at least nothing physically, and it’s still hard to think and invent. If he _thinks_ something he’s suddenly back to staring at the wall or a candy display and the clock he can just barely make out from his position will tell him hours have passed.

If he lets his mind drift, though, disengages active thinking, as if he were half-way meditating, then. Well, then he can think.

Nothing is keeping him in his position, physically, and there’s no reiatsu presence to suggest that someone is keeping him captive. Mentally, something is clearly going on, as he can’t think clearly, consciously, can’t invent, can’t puzzle the problem out.

If it weren’t so clearly a punishment, and have no end in sight, Kisuke might find it a bit restful, really.

Thinking all the time, he thinks.

He blinks back. Takes a breath, breaths out through his nose. Relaxes back.

Nothing is keeping him here…but it almost feels less like he’s being kept, now that he has an idea of what’s going on.

Nothing’s keeping him here, but now Kisuke feels like he’s waiting for something.

~IiI~

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

~IiI~

Kisuke waits. Watches the same flow of customers enter his shop. That group of elementary schoolers every two weeks or so. Every time, they buy two bags of Mitsuya Cider hard candies, and a chocolate bar for each of them.

Kisuke waits. It’s Tuesday, or maybe Thursday, the lady with the luridly floral handbag, who’s friend always waits three minutes and twenty-six seconds before following her. They only come on Tuesday and Thursday. She buys two packs of lemongrass lozenges and a box of caramel. Her friend always buys three boxes of Kit Kats, one dark, one regular, and one matcha, and looks guilty the whole time. It’s every Tuesday and Thursday.

Kisuke waits.

He watches as Tessai-san rings up the elderly man who always buys a box of Pocky, every day at 6:14 PM.

Kisuke waits.

~IiI~

Ichigo is back at the street, further down, this time, staring at an old fashioned candy shop.

Why is he back here? Did his mom take him here ~~recently~~ once or something? She would take him to candy shops on occasion, and absolutely loved chocolate. Is this place known for chocolate? Is that why he’s here?

Something in Ichigo’s soul revolts at that.

This place is important, but not because of chocolate…but he doesn’t go to candy shops now, unless he’s getting something for either or both of the Twins. There’s no reason to, not when it’s just him, but this place is important.

It’s –.

But Ichigo can’t reach the thought, and can’t bring himself to enter when he doesn’t know.

~~But Ichigo doesn’t go home, because there’s something _wrong_ there, too.~~

~IiI~

Kisuke waits and lets Benihime piece his memories together.

There was the Rukongai, (there was Ichigo), then Shinou – meeting Yoruichi-sama and Tessai-san. How the classes were at least marginally less boring than now, because he could think and plan and talk and invent and things around Yoruichi-sama can never be called boring.

(Yoruichi-sama is not here. If Kisuke is right, she would never have been here, but briefly. He and Tessai-san can survive without her, she without them, and if what Kisuke suspects is true, then she is in Soul Society.

She was always spending more time there than here, after the first decade.)

(There was Ichigo.)

Kisuke blinks. Withholds a sigh. Waits.

~IiI~

“ _Mokusou_.”

“ _Kaimoku.”_

“Rise. Bow. _Onegaishimasu._ ”

“…Kurosaki Ichigo.”

Robotically, Ichigo receives his diploma from the principal with a bow, walking over to the edge of the stage in the gym to descend the stairs.

Oh, this is his graduation? His real graduation, or is it a rehearsal?

A quick look as he follows a route he definitely didn’t learn to his seat confirms that this is the real graduation.

Probably. Oyaji isn’t waving some weird banner or something, which Ichigo is expecting, for some reason. His mother isn’t here either and that’s a relief.

~~She’s not supposed to be here anymore, anyways.~~

Besides, has he even done enough school to graduate?

(Why wouldn’t have done enough school to graduate? He’s only missed class ~~to visit his mom’s grave with the family every year, and~~ those couple of times he got sick. Right?

No, no, he’s missed more –.)

Ichigo doesn’t pass out during his high school graduation due to a splitting headache – and really, it feels like someone’s taken great joy in driving massively oversized kitchen knives into his brain and eyes, before slowly removing one only to stick it someone else. It’s so bad, he can practically hear whoever it is cackling. Not passing out is a near thing.

Having a headache should hurt as much as – as – as _something_ , and it’s not losing his mom, and not his comparison to knives to the head. It’s something real, something he’s lived through to compare it to, but it’s not those times before he got good enough that 4 on one odds weren’t bad, it’s not like when he got –.

Something. The headache, migraine, isn’t as bad as _something_.

~IiI~

The Academy, he’d entered the _Onmitsukidou_ , run the Maggots Nest, been third seat and been content, for the most part.

(There was Ichigo.)

Begun to get complacent.

Been promoted, had the rug torn from under him, settled as best he could, but never as a captain, run experiments and ignored his general responsibilities, since Hiyori was competent enough, knew the others better.

Recruited Kurotsuchi.

Settled further, got complacent.

Aizen. (Ichigo.)

Aizen. (Ichigo.)

_Aizen_. _Ichigo_.

(But as much as Benihime hungers, there’s another with a greater chance, a greater right.)

Kisuke waits. Kisuke plans. Kisuke _hungers_.

_Ichigo. Ichigo. Ichigo._

~IiI~

Ichigo’s got a migraine, pissed off his sisters by dodging them and outright fleeing his graduation ceremony as soon as the doors opened.

Yuzu would look worried, offer him some pain medicine, and ask him to sleep until he felt better, would bar Oyaji from causing a scene. Might get Oyaji to take a look at his head, but that wouldn’t make anything better.

Karin would be equally concerned, but would just shove some pain pills in his hand and glare at him until he left and slept.

None of those things will help the migraine though.

Which doesn’t explain why he’s in front of the candy shop again, but then, maybe it does.

Ichigo’s mother is dead, and has been since he was in elementary school. Whatever is wearing her body, her face, her smile is _wrong_ and it’s what’s been making him sick and confused and scatter-brained this whole time.

So that this shop keeps breaking through? That his feet keep leading him here?

Yeah, whoever’s here can help.

So he walks in, migraine pounding behind his temples, but a little bit easier than before. Someone left off sticking a handful of those kitchen knives back in once they’d been yanked out.

“ _Irasshaimase_ ,” a voice calls, deep and vaguely familiar as soon as he pokes his head through the door. It’s not the voice that Ichigo was expecting, but it’s one that belongs in this shop nonetheless.

Which is when he sees – _Getaboushi_ , Rukia, happiness, Kisuke, Hollows, anger, training, Kisuke, “You killed my hat,” training, _hUngER_ , Kisuke, sweat, Kisuke, desperation, _Getsuga Tenshou_ , Orihime, Hollows, the Espada, war, Kisuke and war and battles and battles and Kisuke and war and _Aizen. Aizen. The Hyōgoku and Kyouka Suigetsu._

Ichigo collapses.

~IiI~

Kisuke can _move_ , _crashes down_ , and kisses Ichigo.

~IiI~

They, eventually (“I missed you,” Ichigo says, “and that jackass made me repeat _high school_ ” and doesn’t say that “Aizen made me _forget you_ ,” so Kisuke just keeps hugging him, because his voice sounds less like a croak and more like a broken stair that’s been stepped on), relocate to the kitchen. Kisuke stiff and Ichigo cradling his head, Shiro is cackling wildly, more hysterical than he would’ve expected, and very, very loud. Ichigo makes tea, and glories in how clearly he reaches for things, knows where things are without pausing, staring confused halfway through a motion that doesn’t make sense in the context he has – finally grounded, clouds and wool gone from his head.

Kisuke in turn relishes sitting in a different area, relished the walk over (and how it was spent partially leaning on Ichigo), and would prefer to be standing, even now, but knows he shouldn’t and this isn’t something he can push through. They’ve a war to win, and one chance to win it.

“So, when he fed his _zanpakutou_ to the, uh, crystal ball of Doom, he essentially made it so he could place everyone in all the worlds under an illusion that practically overwrote reality?”

Kisuke hums, taking the tea and Ichigo’s hand, slowly drinking the beverage. He hasn’t had anything to drink in far too long, and he’s been pointedly not thinking about how many times over he should be dead.

(And then taking even odds as to whether these years have actually passed and Benihime has been keeping him alive, or…)

“Or, he’s not powerful enough to completely overwrite reality, and instead we’re all sitting ducks, dreaming in his fake world.”

Ichigo grimaces. “Is it bad that I almost wish we were the sitting ducks option?”

Kisuke tilts his head.

Ichigo stares at his tea cup, clutched loosely in his left hand. “My mom’s back, here, for whatever fucked up reason. And, I’m glad she’s back, but that’s not my mom, is never going to be the mom I lost, and I’m…used to her being dead.”

He sighs, leans forward on his elbow so the tea cup is pressed against his forehead, but even Shiro has laid off, for this.

“At one point, the only thing I wanted was for her to still be alive, so we could talk, and I’d protect her from splashing cars on rainy days, and she was my _mom_ ,” Ichigo’s voice breaks. “But he brought her back, and I won’t lose her all over again, not really, because I always knew there was something _off_ , but my sisters will, Oyaji will.”

And with only two of them against Aizen, now exposed to his _Shikai_ and _Bankai_ they’ve an even lower chance than before, and if they succeed and don’t survive….

The Kurosaki family would be mourning two losses.

“Well,” Kisuke says, because comforting people has never been something he’s comfortable or particularly accomplished at, “we’ll just have to win.”

Ichigo laughs like it’s sticking in his throat, “Yeah, we’ll just have to do that.”

“I’ve a few ide-as,” Kisuke winces as his voice breaks and Ichigo obligingly pours him more tea, and makes him add honey to it.

Jasmine tea is not supposed to have honey in it, but it certainly helps Kisuke’s throat.

“So, basement?” Ichigo suggests, already moving towards the training grounds beneath the shop.

Kisuke nods.

It might be obvious that they’re planning something, but the majority of the equipment is in Kisuke’s lab, whereas the training ground has absolutely nothing but rocks and dirt for miles…along with all sorts of emergency measures and packages. Like a back-up laboratory, and crates of raw materials.

(Kisuke hasn’t noticed any camera flies or anything, and so long as don’t mention any names – purely as a precautionary measure – they should be able to fly under Aizen’s radar. Sure, they were the biggest thorns in his side, but he’s only _almost_ a god, and a complex illusion or recreation of reality is so much harder than affecting only one person’s sense…or leaving everyone to think you’re dead.

At least, that’s what Kisuke knows from working with Hirako, and also what he’s extrapolating.)

It also just so happens to have plenty of space to write out complex formulas to disrupt the entirety of reality, for a second time.

This one, though, Kisuke is putting a kill switch in or maybe, putting it in its own kill switch. Normally, Kisuke would ask more delicately, but, “Ichigo, how would you like to be the one to break the space-time continuum and reality as we know it?”

“Only if you’re picking up the pieces.”

“Of course! Anything for you.”

Ichigo’s answering mumble is barely caught, but he still hears the, “No, anything for _you_.”

* * *

Welp, that's all I've got. I'm not totally happy with the end, mostly bc I did want to do the whole "ah yes, destruction of reality as Aizen wrote it," but brain is going nope, no more and staging a revolt.

Let me know if I missed explaining anything, or messed something up!

Kudos and comments welcome!

~Fins

**Author's Note:**

> Translation notes:  
> Mokusou = meditation. Done in every single class (in elementary and middle school -- or the ones I teach at, at least, and presumably also done in high school), lasts between 30 seconds and 3 minutes or so.  
> Kaimoku = what they say to end meditation.  
> Rise. Bow. is kiritsu and rei, if anyone's curious.  
> Onegaishimasu = ....uh, a combination of please teach us/thank you in advance for teaching us/we respect you...ish. In this context.  
> Onegai = please, usually as a plea, or more of a playful cutesy request (? I legit don't use the short form of this like ever, which is surprising bc me and desu/masu form haven't gotten along since before I studied abroad)
> 
> I also neither remember much of my own high school graduation, nor much of my kids' middle school graduation, which was funky bc corona and Japan shut down all public schools in March, so *shrugs*.
> 
> Also, Aizen's thought process was probably like: If I distract the biggest pain in my ass with his mom back, I can just continue being a god. Kisuke is stuck sitting in place, basically in solitary confinement with thoughts etc messed up because Aizen has a grudge. He's also got a grudge against Ichigo, but I feel like he's got a deeper grudge with Kisuke if the war dragged out more, as much as Ichigo is the face of a lot of his plans going awry, Aizen probably chalks a fair few up to Kisuke being behind the scenes, whether he actually is or not.  
> (It's been ages since I read canon, but like. I never got the idea that Aizen thought Ichigo was particularly /smart/. Powerful? Yes. A Pain? Yes. Given to planning? No. ...Which is honestly fair.)


End file.
